Qatar 2022 will take place in November/December

FSF statement on the FIFA Taskforce’s announcement that Qatar 2022 will take place in November/December 2022:

“Once again this is a top-down decision from FIFA that has alienated both fans and clubs. Sheikh Salman claims the decision was taken after ‘detailed discussions with all stakeholders’ – we’d love to know which fans’ groups FIFA consulted in that case.

“The FSF is affiliated to Football Supporters Europe and they weren’t consulted, despite representing millions of fans across the continent. This casts a further cloud over the entire decision to award the tournament to Qatar adding to concerns about human rights, labour laws and total lack of transparency.

“FIFA are in a bind now as it’s quite clear a summer tournament would be unpopular with fans and almost impossible for players. A winter tournament seems to be opposed by clubs and not the most popular of options with fans.

“Qatar ‘won’ the 2022 bid on the basis of it being a summer tournament. The fact they’ve changed the rules four years after bidding was completed raises questions about the entire process. Inevitably this will bring renewed focus onto FIFA’s governance and decision-making; these are questions that aren’t going away.”